Ibbotson Family of Hathersage, Derbyshire
The Ibbotson family history charts their migration, exploring family records and how their legacy lives on today.
Introduction
This research began with the intention of tracing my English ancestors of the Australian branch of the Ibbotsons, specifically those that settled on the Bellarine Peninsular near Geelong, Victoria in the 1800s.
I have relied on numerous resources including Ancestry.com, British newspaper archives, on-line records, wills and conveyance records produced by other researchers, cemetery records, family records and most usefully, a 1982 two-part publication by former Yorkshire librarian Rosamund Meredith, Farms and Families of Hathersage Outseats. The latter is now out of print but copies of same were provided to me by current owners of some of the former Ibbotson properties during a visit to Hathersage in May 2023.
I have traced ancestors as far back as the mid 1600s to the Parishes of Hathersage and Hope in Derbyshire when the likes of Baptism, Death & Marriage (BDM) records became accessible.
The BDM records produced at the time were rudimentary at best.
Birth dates, as opposed to Baptism dates, were not generally recorded for another 150 years or so. During the 1600s & 1700s there was little detail given. Baptisms were recorded as the child of the father. Mothers rarely got a mention except where the mother was unmarried and the child was recorded as the ‘illegitimate child of’ or ‘bastard child of’. The mother was then named but not the father. Such was the status of women in the eyes of the church! The neighbouring Parish of Hope was an exception. Mothers were usually included in Baptism records.
Likewise, ages at death were not given. If the death was a child (under 21) only the father was usually recorded. Again, the mother it seems didn’t count.
It wasn’t until around 1813 that both parents were recorded along with ages at death for both children & adults. Death records could then often be used to trace back to baptisms, presuming that births took place shortly before baptism, which wasn’t always the case, & thus full parentage.
With these issues it became necessary to extract every Ibbotson name from the BDM registers over a 200-year period. It was then usually possible to determine who was born to who etc although there were a few Ibbotsons who cannot be connected and presumably the progeny of much earlier IIbbotsons.
There were a number of Ibbotsons who married 1st and 2nd cousins, relatively common at the time. Another complication was marriages between cousins where new borns were given the mother’s maiden name as a middle name eg: a son of William Ibbotson and his cousin Mary Ibbotson nee Ibbotson became Henry Ibbotson Ibbotson. Other Ibbotsons married Ibbotsons from other districts apparently unrelated to each other.
Further complicating research was naming conventions or lack thereof. Some of the parish BDM records go back to the 1500s, initially written in Latin and often damaged or otherwise illegible. Even when English became the norm in the early 1600s, Christian names were still known, for a while, by the earlier version eg: Edward was Eduardis, Robert was Robertus and Henry was Henri or Henricus.
Likewise, surname conventions varied and seemed to have been written as they sounded and often changed/varied when church officials changed even though they were clearly of the same person/family. Ibbotson as we know it today was variously written as Ibutson, Ibbutson or Ibottson among other variations. It wasn’t until around 1735 that the current spelling became consistent in the Parishes of Hathersage & Hope. Curiously though one branch of the Parish of Hope Ibbotsons changed the spelling of the name to Ibberson.
I then extended my research to siblings of my direct ancestors. It then became necessary to consult neighbouring & nearby Parish records in Derbyshire as well as Bradfield & Sheffield in Yorkshire where Ibbotson families had lived for at least as early as those in the Hope Valley, Derbyshire.
Hathersage- Peak District, Hope Valley
First Generation (Insofar as can be established)
My direct ancestors, as far back as can be established, are first traced at Nether Hirst farm on the outskirts Hathersage (Outseats) within the broader Hope Valley. Their history prior to the first identified ancestor, Eduardus (Edward) Ibutson 1641-1702 (son of Johis!) is not known. They may have been elsewhere in the Hope Valley from much earlier or even from further afield.
Outseats Farm
Outseats covers an area abutting Hathersage village, extending around two miles to the north and is the location of most of the farms discussed below. It lies to the west of the grit-stone escarpment known as Stanedge Edge and east of the river Derwent. The whole area was heavily wooded in mediaeval times before being partially cleared and small settlements established. All of these farms are effectively within walking distance of each other.
Nether Hirst/Hurst
Old records suggest that by around 1251 a few farms had been established in these woodland (Hirst) areas. Nether Hirst appears to have been among the first of the settlements and is first mentioned in the Doomsday Book of 1086. Rosamund Meredith gives a detailed history of the ownership/tenancy of Nether Hirst from the 13th century.
Edward was baptised on 6 February 1641 at St Michaels, Hathersage. Anna daughter of Radulphi (Ralph) Jowatt was baptised on 24 March 1643. Ralph was at the time a tenant of what was then known as Nether Hirst farm on the outskirts of Hathersage village.
Edward & Anna married at St Michaels C of E on 6 January 1667. Their first child appears to have died at birth with abode of parents given as the Hirst, the original spelling of Hurst. Subsequent children were all baptised c/o Nether Hirst (Lower Hirst.)
Edward & his family prospered carrying on farming and weaving. His numerous descendants were living on nearby farms well into the 20th century.
An inventory drawn up at Edward’s death in 1702 lists an extensive array of weaving equipment including 32 stone of wool (about 200kgs), looms, shears & cloth as well as one ‘nag’, one mare, 12 cattle, 30 ewes, 68 other sheep & food stocks. His household furniture and goods were also listed right down to 5 pairs of bed socks! His will left the house & garden and two ‘closes’ (parcels of land) to his wife for the remainder of his lease.
Small sums went to his sons John (1674- ) & William (1676-1723.) Sons Abraham & Henry (1680-1771) got the weaving equipment. Other (rented) houses and land (there were at least three houses on the property) were shared equally between William, Abraham, and Henry. It is not known what became of John although he benefited from his uncle John’s will of 1708 (uncle John, Edward’s brother, was from Kings Haigh near Hope.) He has either died soon after this will or left the district. Abraham also becomes a mystery as there are two Abraham Ibbotsons of Nether Hirst buried at Hathersage in 1707 & 1733 respectively.
Henry died in 1771 aged 90. I will return to him & his Hathersage descendants in the ‘Back to England‘ section.
Second Generation
William 1676-1723, son of Edward, was our next descendant. His first wife, Amy nee Wilkin, died in 1713 aged 37 after bearing 7 children. Only two survived into adulthood. A daughter, Ellen, married the son of another Nether Hirst tenant but died in 1738 aged 28 years.
William had one surviving son with Amy, also William (1708-1789) who continued at Nether Hirst which I touch on in the ‘Back to England‘ section.
Meanwhile, following the death of William snr’s first wife Amy, he married again in 1717 to Alice Staveley while still living at Nether Hirst. They had two children, Elizabeth who died in infancy and Joseph (1721-1785.) William died in 1723 aged 46 leaving Alice with infant Joseph, our next descendant.
Third Generation
Joseph married Ruth Simpson (1722-1796) in 1745. By around 1743 however, before his marriage, he had moved to nearby Greens House farm. A roughly carved and partially legible inscription on Greens House Cottage reads (……….H Ibbotson 1743.)
Joseph and Ruth had 9 children over 19 years:
- Ruth (1746-)
- Abraham (1749-1841)
- Millicent (1750-1772)
- Henry (1753-1843)
- John (1755-1841) Next descendant
- William (1757-1838)
- Betty (1759-1825)
- Joseph (1762-1848)
- Dennis (1765-1839
Greens Paper Mill
A long-abandoned lead mill was located about 300 yards below Greens House on the Hood Brook. Around 1760 Joseph, along with a man named Littlewood from another old Hope Valley family, converted the mill into a paper mill which became known as Greens Paper Mill.
The following is quoted from Rosamund Meredith’s research:
“The tenant at Greens’ House in the 1760s was Joseph Ibbotson (youngest son of William Ibbotson of Nether Hirst) and according to Joseph’s son Dennis, his father and a partner named Littlewood rebuilt the mill as a paper mill, subsequently occupied by Joseph. From about 1793 it was worked by Denis who took over the farm also about 1801-2. Denis was Joseph’s youngest son and he had to buy out his brothers paying John £199, Henry £30 and William £20. When he first had the mill the rent was £2, afterwards raised to £5.5s. These details he reported to James Holworthy of Brookfield, who recorded this and much other information in the 1820s. He commented that though Denis had only a few days schooling, he had done well and brought up a large family. The mill, which made course brown paper, continued to be worked till the mid 19th century.”
Joseph died in 1785 aged 64. Ruth died in 1796 aged 74.
Fourth Generation
John, our next descendant, along with his siblings was born at his parent’s residence at Greens House. On 21 July 1784, John married Susanah Bradwall (1769-1824) at Hathersage. John was 28 & Susanah 16/17. Marriages at a young age were permitted with the consent of parents. They had 6 children:
- Samuel (1784 -1873) Next descendant
- John (1786-1788)
- Nancy (1789-1850)
- John (1791-1838)
- Mary (1794-1877)
- Sarah (1798-1849)
It is not known where John & family initially lived after their marriage but it was most likely at Greens House.
Hayfield / Derbyshire
John & family left Hathersage soon after the birth of their last child Sarah and probably around the time that his younger brother Dennis brought him out of his share of Greens Mill in 1801-2. It seems that John went into the same industry at Hayfield, around 15 miles from Hathersage, where a number of mills were already long established.
- Their daughter Nancy 1789-1850 married Robert Slack (1782-1851), the owner of Bank Vale paper mill at Hayfield. One of her grandsons, Harold Slack (1836-1920) emigrated to New South Wales and became a prominent farmer at Wollombi near Cessnock.
- Son John 1791-1838 bought the White Hall paper mill at nearby Chapel-en-le Frith in 1822. He died in 1838 aged 46. His wife Mary nee Bromley died three years earlier after falling from a horse carriage.
- Mary 1794-1877 married George Eyre (1785-1856.) Mary was a minor and married with the consent of her parents. George was a woollen manufacturer with his mill located in the centre of Hayfield. One of her sons, John Eyre (1826-1904), emigrated to Victoria presumably at the behest of his cousin Charles and worked at Charles’ cattle run at Tawanga in the Alpine country – see separate Charles Ibbotson 1813-1883 history.
- Daughter Sarah 1798-1849. Married John Ridgeway farmer of Hayfield. She died at Ravens Leach, Hayfield.
Susanah died at Primrose Vale, Hayfield in 1824 aged 55.
John snr died at Ravens Leach, Hayfield in 1841 aged 86. He was buried at St Mathews C of E church yard, Hayfield (I was unable to find a gravestone during a visit in May 2023.)
It seems that John snr had continued in the family paper making trade at Hayfield after being bought out of his father’s Greens Mill at Hathersage, as did his son.
Fifth Generation
Our next descendant Samuel Ibbotson (1784–1873) married Martha Hyde (1787–1862) on 6 August 1810 at Manchester Cathedral, about 18 miles from Hayfield, Derbyshire. Martha was the daughter of a prominent family from nearby Mellor and a single mother of a 3-year-old daughter.
Ann Hyde (1807–1877) was born on 24 August 1807 and baptised on 11 October 1807 as the daughter of Martha Hyde. No father was mentioned.
Ann remained with Martha and Samuel after their marriage and became Ann Hyde Ibbotson. She married John Duffy, a map seller of Manchester, at Manchester Cathedral on 11 June 1829. Ann’s place of abode was given as Staveley, Derbyshire (near the family farm at Nether Handley).
The marriage only lasted 3 years, either through divorce or John’s death.
On 24 August 1832, Ann married Charles Ross (1801–1884) at Staveley, Derbyshire.
Charles started out in 1818 as a reporter for The Times in London and in 1820 joined the House of Commons Press Gallery. He later became Chief of The Times parliamentary staff. By his death in 1884 aged 84, he was regarded as the father of the House of Commons Press Gallery, from where he had reported for 63 years.
According to an open-source article, apparently sourced from the Ross family, Charles became a friend of novelist Charles Dickens, who also worked as a journalist in the Press Gallery. Ross is said to have given Dickens a statistical magazine on juvenile delinquency while he was writing Oliver Twist. Ross and Dickens were reputed to enjoy “punch and cigars” together with other journalists on Saturday nights. Another anecdote suggested that Charles Ross’ sister Georgina, also a writer, was once engaged to Dickens before her father put a stop to it.
Ann and Charles had three children:
Janet Elizabeth Ross (1833–1920) was born in London. At some point, Janet went to India where, in 1863 in Bengal, she married India-born British soldier Captain James Stuart Knox (1837–1912). On returning to England after the death of their infant second son in 1865, James became Governor of Gloucester Prison and later Wandsworth Prison in London. Their eldest son, also born in India, became Lt Colonel Sir Hamish (James) Stuart Knox and, like his father, served in the army for many years before becoming Governor of several prisons, then Convenor of Prisons, for which he received his knighthood. Janet’s remaining two sons also became army officers, with the youngest, Lieutenant Charles Stuart Knox (1872–1901), captured with around 300 of his fellow Gloucestershire Regiment soldiers during the Boer War at Nicholson’s Nek. In the summer of 1900, after being released, his regiment was sent to Ceylon (Sri Lanka) to guard Boer prisoners. He died in November 1901 in Colombo in unknown circumstances aged 29 and is buried there.
Charles Harry Marsland Ross (1835–1897) was baptised in London as Charles Harry Ross to father Charles Ross and mother Ann Elizabeth Hyde Ross. He became an author and, like his father, briefly worked for The Times as a Press Gallery reporter. In 1860, he became a civil servant/clerk at the Navy Office, Somerset House; however, he made his name as a caricaturist and producer of Penny Dreadful publications. He was declared bankrupt on two occasions. Whilst he usually published under pseudonyms, open-source articles refer to him as Charles Henry Ross.
Ellen Mary Ann Hyde Ross (1842–1925) married Dalton Robert Mallam (1835–1903), a London solicitor. They had a son, Ross Ibbotson Dalton Mallam, also a solicitor, who emigrated to South Australia in 1902 to practise law before becoming the sole Supreme Court Judge for the Northern Territory in Darwin. He retired to Melbourne in 1933 due to ill health and died in 1954 aged 76. He had never married. A Melbourne newspaper obituary referenced his cousins George and Victor de Pury and Louis Whyte (of Lilydale & Geelong respectively) – see separate Charles Ibbotson section for further.
Ann Hyde Ross died in London on 1 June 1877 aged 69. She is buried at Brompton Cemetery, London, as Elizabeth Anne Hyde Ross, having added “Elizabeth” as a Christian name many years earlier. Charles died on 6 December 1884 aged 84. He is buried with Ann at Brompton.
A lengthy obituary published in The Times was picked up by the Geelong Advertiser, Victoria, Australia. Charles was an uncle of Alfred Charles Ibbotson (1844–1926) of Geelong, who was the son of Charles Ibbotson (1813–1883), brother of Ann.
By 1811, Samuel and Martha were sheep farming at Spray House Farm just outside the village of Little Hayfield on the road to Glossop. They had seven children together, of whom five survived into adulthood:
- John born 1811 at Spray House. Died in infancy in 1813.
- Charles born 1813 at Spray House. He emigrated to Sydney, New South Wales in 1831 aged 18 and became a wealthy wool merchant after moving to Geelong, Victoria in 1850. He became colonial manager/partner in Dalgety Ibbotson & Co in 1852. He acquired ‘Ellendale’ farm at East Bellarine near Geelong in 1865 from the original squatter/owner and renamed it Spray House Farm after his Little Hayfield, Derbyshire birth place. He died at Geelong in 1883 aged 70 – see ‘Back to England‘ for his business family history.
- John born 1816 at Spray House. Our next descendant.
- Samuel born 1817 at Spray House.
- Sarah Ann Moss born 1820 at Spray House. Married George Goody in 1839. Their son George later emigrated to Queensland, Australia however appears to have died in South Africa during a return visit to England. Moss was her grandmother’s maiden name.
- Thomas born 1821 Spray House. Emigrated to Victoria, Australia in 1851, presumably at the behest of his brother Charles, to work Charles’ Tawanga Station cattle run in Victoria’s alpine country. He died in 1858 aged 37 after a lightning strike spooked his horse – see ‘Back to England‘ for more.
- Harry born 1825. Harry was baptised at Ashopton, Derwent, Derbyshire. Ashopton was about 8 miles north of father Samuel’s birthplace of Hathersage.
In 1823, two years prior to young Harry’s birth, Samuel’s father-in-law, Thomas Hyde had died and his will provided substantially to his children, or more accurately, to the husbands of his daughters. Samuel received a new house with a loomshop and a separate 17 acre property at a place known as Ringstones at Thornsett near Hayfield.
The property was not far from Spray House farm. Another son-in-law of Thomas held a 15-year lease over the property which Samuel had to respect while receiving rent from the property. It is not known when or if Samuel and Martha eventually took possession of the property or what became of it.
In any event, Samuel had by 1825 left Little Hayfield and is now Innkeeper of the Ashopton Inn where young Harry was born.
The villages of Ashopton and nearby Derwent, including the Inn, no longer exist. They are now under the Ladybower reservoir built in the 1940s.
Samuel is still recorded as Innkeeper in 1826. Nothing further is known of Samuel and family until August 1833 when an article in the Derby Mercury reports on the accidental death of a boy of about 10 years who had been kicked in the head by a horse. The boy was the ‘son of Ibbotson’ of Handley. Later census records show this to be Samuel and family with young Harry missing. It seems clear that he was the young boy.
1841 Census – Parish of Staveley
The first Census in England is conducted in 1841. Samuel and some of his family are recorded at Nether Handley, a small hamlet in the Parish of Staveley, north-east Derbyshire about 15 miles east of Hathersage.
- Samuel, farmer aged 57
- Martha aged 55
- John aged 25 – next descendant
- Samuel aged 23
- Thomas aged 21
- Sarah Ann Goody aged 20. She had married George Goody from a neighbouring farm in 1839
- George Goody aged about 1 year. Son of Sarah & George
- Infant as yet unnamed of Sarah & George.
Four workers are also listed suggesting that the farm was quite large and prosperous.
In 1846 Samuel is listed in a Commercial Directory as a farmer at Nether Handley.
All references to Staveley, Troway, Ridgeway, Eckington and Nether Handley in this and later Census’ should be taken as the same general area. Parish names changed over the years but covered those villages. Physical addresses were not recorded in this Census however it is likely that Nether Handley (a very small hamlet) was their actual place of abode. These towns/villages are also near Sheffield in Yorkshire & Chesterfield.
1851 Census – Parish of Staveley, Village of Nether Handley, Derbyshire
| Samuel Ibbotson | abt 67 yrs | Farmer of 11 acres | Bn Hathersage, Derbyshire |
| Martha Ibbotson | abt 65 yrs | Bn Mellor, Derbyshire | |
| Samuel Ibbotson | abt 33 yrs | Farmer’s Son | Bn Hayfield, Derbyshire |
| Thomas Ibbotson | abt 30 yrs | Farmer’s Son | Bn Hayfield, Derbyshire |
| George Goody | Husband of Sarah | Bn Clowne, Derbyshire (not far from the Staveley area.) | |
| Sarah Ann Moss (Ibbotson) | Bn Hayfield, Derbyshire | ||
| George Goody Son of Sarah & George | Bn Nether Handley |
Three servants/labourers were also listed.
Samuel jnr who soon after this Census seems to have been mostly living at Cobhom (sic) Hall in London, married Sarah Ann Scott of Lambeth, London in December 1855 when he was 37 years and she 18 years. Samuel jnr died in 1891 aged 74 years. Sarah died in 1917 aged 80 years.
Thomas had emigrated to Victoria, Australia in 1851 shortly after this Census. He had been brought to Victoria by his elder brother Charles to manage a cattle run at Tawanga in the High Country but died in an accident 7 years later in 1858 – see Charles Ibbotson history.
Sixth Generation
In 1845, our next descendant, John Ibbotson aged about 29 years married Jane Rodgers 1824-1876, the youngest daughter of a neighbouring Nether Handley farmer. The marriage took place at nearby Sheffield in Yorkshire County. They went on to have 11 children over 17 years including ancestor Harry – see Ibbotson Australian descendants. The first 7 children were born in the Ridgeway area. The last 4 in the London area.
1851 Census – Parish Township of Troway – Village of Ridgeway, Derbyshire
| John Ibbotson | 34yrs | Bn Hayfield, Derbyshire |
| Mary Ibbotson | 27yrs | Bn Staveley, Derbyshire |
| John Ibbotson | 5yrs | Bn Staveley |
| Charles Ibbotson | 4yrs | Bn Staveley |
| Harry Ibbotson | 2yrs | Bn Staveley (next descendant) |
| Mary Ann Ibbotson | abt 24yrs | Bn Sheffield, Yorkshire |
Mary Ann is declared as an unmarried visitor. Presumably a relative however the name is too common to determine her parentage. Sheffield is only a few miles across the border into Yorkshire where a number of other Ibbotson families resided.
One servant/labourer is also listed.
The Villages of Nether Handley & Ridgeway are a short distance from each other. It appears that although John is recorded as a farmer in this 1851 Census, he has moved off the farm shortly after. Between 1851 and at least 1857 he is listed in commercial directories as Publican/Innkeeper at the Queens Head hotel, Ridgeway. In “Whites 1857 Directory of Derbyshire”, John Ibbotson is recorded as Butcher at the Hamlet of Ridgeway. He also gives the occupations of publican/butcher in his children’s baptism records between 1853 and 1857.
All the children, were baptised between 1846 and 1857 with parents declared as John & Jane Ibbotson. They were baptised as follows:
| John Rodgers | Baptised 26 Feb 1846 | birth date not given |
| Charles | Baptised 8 Feb 1848 | birth date not given |
| Harry | Baptised 7 Feb 1853 | bn 24 Nov 1849 |
| Mary Ann | Baptised 7 Feb 1853 | bn 6 Dec 1852 |
| Ellen | Baptised 29 Nov 1857 | bn 6 Dec 1853 |
| Agnes | Baptised 29 Nov 1857 | bn 5 Dec 1855 |
| Samuel | Baptised 29 Nov 1857 | bn 16 Jun 1857 |
The birth dates of sons John Rodgers Ibbotson and Charles Ibbotson were not noted in the baptism records however were found in the handwritten records of another related family member:
John Rodgers Ibbotson born 31 January 1846.
Charles Ibbotson 1 December 1847.
The birth dates found in the baptism records of the other children also match those handwritten records with only minor discrepancies.
It is not known why the last 5 of the children were baptised in ‘batches’ and years after their birth. Harry wasn’t baptised until 3 years after his birth. The birth dates of the last 5 were written in the margins of the baptism register.
Curiously, the 1851 Census above gives John’s wife as ‘Mary’ although he had married Jane Rodgers 6 years earlier in 1845 at nearby Sheffield. Jane was the youngest daughter of a neighbouring Nether Handley farmer and according to baptism records, was the mother of all their children, including our ancestor Harry. Further complicating things was Harry’s 1939 Victorian death certificate which gives his mother’s name as Mary nee Hyde. This on the surface is clearly wrong and may have been a mistake on the part of one of his sons who provided those details for the death certificate (Harry’s grandmother was in fact a Hyde.) It doesn’t explain however why Mary is given as the Christian name in the 1851 Census unless Jane was commonly known as Mary for a time. Even Harry’s elder brother Charles’ 1904 Australian death certificate gives his mother‘s name as Jane (with maiden name unknown.) All subsequent Census’ refer to Jane as John’s wife and mother of all their children.
John & Jane and family had left the Queens Head Hotel, Ridgeway by around 1860 when their youngest child Thomas Hyde Ibbotson was born in West Ham, Stratford just outside London. Unlike his father Samuel and brother Samuel jnr, John & family have left the Ridgeway area permanently.
1861 Census – Parish of All Saints West Ham (St Johns) – Ward of Stratford
This is in the Greater London area.
| John Ibbotson | 44yrs | Bn Hayfield, Derbyshire |
| Jane Ibbotson | 37yrs | Bn Staveley |
| John Rodgers Ibbotson is not present | He would have been around 15-16. | |
| Charles Ibbotson | 14yrs | Bn Eckington /Ridgeway |
| Harry Ibbotson | 12yrs | Bn Eckington/Ridgeway |
| Mary A Ibbotson | 10yrs | Bn Eckington/Ridgeway |
| Ellen Ibbotson | 8yrs | Bn Eckington /Ridgeway |
| Agnes Ibbotson | 6yrs | Bn Eckington /Ridgeway |
| Samuel Ibbotson | 4yrs | Bn Eckington /Ridgeway |
| Thomas H Ibbotson | 1yr | Bn West Ham, Stratford, County Essex |
John Ibbotson’s occupation is given as Grocer. Address given as 2 Castle Place, Parish of West Ham All Saints, Stratford (part of Greater London.)
Samuel Ibbotson died in 1863 aged 6. His death is registered in the Oct/Nov/Dec quarter of that year in the Hertfordshire district register that covered the Colesdale Farm, Northaw area where the family was living at the time. Another daughter of John & Jane, Ada Ibbotson, also appeared in the same quarter of the same register. Ada didn’t appear in the above Census as she was born after the Census was taken in April of 1861. Ada was born on 4 May 1861 (sourced from family records) taken thus she was 2 years old when she died.
John’s father Samuel is also in the Stratford, Greater London area in this 1861 Census.
| Samuel Ibbotson | 77 yrs | |
| Martha Ibbotson | 75 yrs | |
| Samuel Ibbotson | 43 yrs | |
| Sarah A Ibbotson | 25 yrs | Bn Lambeth, Surrey Daughter in Law |
| George Goody | 20 yrs | Bn Staveley, Derbyshire, Nephew |
Address is given as Chobham Hall, Parish of West Ham All Saints, Stratford, Essex.
This was in what is now known as Chobham Manor. The adjacent entry in the Census record is given as 1 Chobham Road (this general area became the site of the 2012 London Olympic Village.)
Sarah A Ibbotson is not to be confused with Sarah Ann Moss Ibbotson who is by now married to George Goody. The Sarah A Ibbotson here is Samuel Jnr’s wife, Sarah Ann nee Scott. They were married in London in 1855.
Both Samuel Snr and Samuel Jnr give their occupations as ‘Retired Farmers.’
Neither Sarah A Moss Goody nor husband George Goody appear in this entry George had died in 1851 and Sarah had re-married and moved away, however their son George Goody, Samuel & Martha’s grandson does.
At the time this census was taken, Samuel and Martha’s very wealthy son and brother of our John, Charles Ibbotson (1813-1883) and his wife and 5 teenaged children are staying in central London on a visit from Geelong, Victoria. It is probable that the Ibbotson clan have gathered in London, temporarily and coincidently at the time this census was taken, to visit Charles and family and/or in connection with Dalgety & Co which was headquartered in London. Charles was the Geelong partner/representative of Dalgety Ibbotson & Co. This would have been the first time that Samuel & Martha had seen their Australian grandchildren. Charles had emigrated to Australia as a young man in 1831 and by the mid 1850s had become a very wealthy wool merchant, civic identity and farmer in Geelong and district.
Samuel jnr had given Chobham Hall as his address at the time of his 1855 marriage thus it is likely that Samuel Snr & Martha were staying temporarily with their son.
By 1862, after Charles and family had returned to Geelong, Samuel Snr and Samuel jnr returned to a farm near Chesterfield/Staveley. Again both had referred to themselves as ‘retired farmers.’ Samuel snr’s wife Martha Ibbotson had died that year in London and was brought back to Staveley for burial.
By this time Samuel jnr had acquired the tenancy of a farm known as Stonelow, not far from the earlier farm at Nether Handley and on the road between Chesterfield and Baslow. Samuel Snr was also living with his son. That farm was on land owned by the Duke of Rutland.
Between 1866 & 1867, Samuel jnr and his wife are involved in a high-profile series of court proceedings (reported on extensively in local newspapers) in which Samuel jnr is attempting to prevent the seizure of his household goods and farming equipment to pay his substantial debts incurred following earlier unsuccessful law suits. Samuel jnr had fled out the backdoor of the Stonelow farmhouse as the bailiffs arrived at the front door. He and his wife fled back to London under a false name. A ‘whereabouts’ notice was placed in local newspapers.
He appears to have been living between London and the Stonelow farm for some years while the farm was being run by others with his elderly father, Samuel snr, as manager/supervisor.
For some years Samuel jnr had also owned a nearby corn mill known as Whittington Steam Mill. The mill had been in the possession of Samuel jnr since at least 1852 and had been part financed by his then wealthy elder brother, Geelong based Charles Ibbotson. Charles was also supporting Samuel snr with a regular stipend. Samuel jnr had attempted unsuccessfully to sell the mill in 1866 to cover his debts. It was put up again for sale in 1870 in a fully renovated state, with Samuel as the contact person. He next appears in the 1881 Census living with Sarah in London. Nothing further is heard of Samuel jnr’s life until his death in 1891 aged 74 near London. Sarah died in London in 1917 aged 80.
1871 Census – Parish of Northaw – County of Hertfordshire
| John Ibbotson | 55yrs | Derbyshire, Ridgeway (should be Hayfield!) |
| Jane Ibbotson | 47yrs | Staveley |
| Charles Ibbotson | 23yrs | Staveley |
| Harry Ibbotson | 21yrs | Staveley |
| Mary Ann Ibbotson | 19yrs | Staveley |
| Ellen Ibbotson | 17yrs | Staveley |
| Agnes Ibbotson | 15yrs | Staveley |
| Thomas Hyde Ibbotson | 11yrs | Stratford, Essex |
| William Ibbotson | 7yrs | Northaw, Hertfordshire |
| Martha Jane Ibbotson | 5yrs | Northaw, Hertfordshire |
John Snr is now recorded as a farmer at Colesdale Farm, Northaw, Hertfordshire on 225 acres employing 2 labourers. He died 5 years later in 1876 aged 60. He would have been on this farm since at least 1864 where his last son William was born, or even as early as 1861 after leaving the Inn at Ridgeway near Sheffield.
Over the preceding and following years after John’s death 5 of his sons and one married daughter had emigrated to either Australia or New Zealand, most it appears with the support or encouragement of their uncle Charles Ibbotson 1813 -1883.
- John Rodgers Ibbotson 1846-1933 emigrated to Australia in 1866 on the SS Great Victoria with his cousin George F Goody (son of John’s sister Sarah Ann Moss Goody nee Ibbotson – see 1851&1861 census above.) This emigration information only came to light when I noticed it documented in another family history sourced from family anecdotes. John & George had left Plymouth on 12 October 1865 and landed at Moreton Bay, Queensland on 1 January 1866. John spent the next 70 years near Gladstone, Queensland working as a saw miller then farmer. He died at Burua, Clyde Creek near Calliope, Queensland on 2 July 1933. His obituary gave his age at 92 however this seems to have been drawn from an incorrect date of birth. His Actual age at death was 87 years. (The birth date of 20 March 1840 and birth place of Silkstone, South Yorkshire, England found on the Find a Grave website is incorrect and belongs to an unrelated John Ibbotson who died, also at Silkstone, in 1928.)
George Frederick Goody is found on a memorial plaque in Builyan cemetery near Gladstone, Queensland. It has been placed there by his great great grandchildren with an inscription that reads “presumed died South Africa late 1881.” It is not known what George was doing in South Africa. He was married with 5 children at the time.
- Charles Ibbotson emigrated to Victoria, Australia sometime after 1879 (he was a witness at sister Mary Ann’s marriage in London of that year.) His actual immigration record cannot be found. He doesn’t appear in official records until an obituary, placed in a newspaper by his brother, Harry Marsland Ibbotson, notes his death from chronic asthma on 12 May at Macedon, Victoria. He doesn’t appear to have married.
- Harry emigrates to Port Phillip, Melbourne with his new wife Myrah in late 1876. See Ibbotson Immigration below.
- Thomas Hyde Ibbotson emigrates to New Zealand around 1878.
- William Ibbotson emigrates to New Zealand around 1882.
- Mary Ann Ibbotson married neighbouring farmer William Peet. They emigrated to Melbourne in 1882 on the SS Liguria and lived at Macedon where brother Charles lived and died.
As mentioned above, Samuel and another daughter of John & Jane, Ada had died in 1863.
Agnes 1855-1951 and Martha Jane 1865-1931 had both married and remained in England.
Ellen cannot be traced after the 1871 Census when she was about 17 years of age.
1871 Census Parish of Acton, Middlesex
Samuel Ibbotson snr aged about 87 years is shown separately as a widower at Mornington Villa (sic), Acton, Middlesex, along with a 22 year old servant. He had left Stonelow Farm, along with Samuel jnr and family sometime after 1867 following their legal troubles.
He is shown 2 years later as buried in the Parish of Staveley, on 12 April 1873 aged 89 years. There is a notation that he was “Formerly of Staveley” where he had lived for many years as a farmer. He had probably died at Mornington Villa, Middlesex (now Greater London) and his body returned for burial at Staveley where his wife Martha had been buried in 1862. Martha had died in London in 1862 during or following the family ‘reunion.
1881 Census Northaw – County of Hertfordshire – Registration District of Hatfield
| William Peet | Farmer of 240 Acres | |
| Mary Ann | William Peet has married Mary Ann Ibbotson before emigrating to Victoria | |
| Jane Ibbotson | Widow | |
| Margaret Peet | 1 month old daughter of William & Mary Ann | |
| William Ibbotson | 16 years. Youngest son of Jane & the late John | |
Address given as Park Farm which neighboured Mary Ann’s father John’s Colesdale Farm above.
After John’s death Jane had moved in with her daughter and son-in-law along with her son William.
William is 16 years of age. He emigrates to New Zealand soon after this census joining his elder brother Thomas Hyde Ibbotson & cousin Frank Ibbotson (son of Charles of Dalgety Ibbotson & Co, Geelong – see ‘Back to England’ for New Zealand Ibbotsons.
John Ibbotson had died in 1876 aged about 60 years. His death is registered at Ware, Hertfordshire. Ware was the Registration District that covered deaths including in Northaw where John & family had been living since around 1861. His burial place has not been identified.
1891 Census 5 April – Village of Bushey, Hertfordshire
| Jane Ibbotson | 69yrs | Widow |
| Martha Jane Ibbotson | 25yrs | |
| Lilian Daniell | 11yrs |
Martha Jane is Jane and the late John’s youngest child. Martha later married Alfred John Willoughby.
Lilian is the daughter of Agnes who had married Averil William Daniell.
Jane died 5 years later in 1896. Her death is registered at Hendon Registration District, Middlesex as died in 1896 aged 74. Not far from her previous residence of London Road, Bushey. As per John, her burial site is not known.
I do genealogical research on the Sa(u)nderson surname across much of England. One of the lines that I’ve researched covers the Hope/Edale/Bradfield/Sheffield area that you cover in your Ibbotson section. There are three Sanderson wills from 1727-8 (Robert of Bradfield Dale), 1753 (Jeremiah of Edale) and 1754 Benjamin of Nether Denby). The years given are for the wills being proved at York. All three have a bearing on some of what you discuss, particularly relating to two Ibbotsons (with various spellings): William of Nether Hirst and Henry of Wharncliffe Side in Sheffield. They may be from entirely separate families. The information below might help you with a Littlewood connection that your text mentions. If you come across anything relating to Sandersons from the period up to around 1850 please let me know.
All of Robert’s children except for Thomas were mentioned in Robert’s will of 1724; Mary had married Nicholas Hadfield at Hope on 2nd October 1705 so was listed under her married surname. Robert’s son Jeremiah lived in Edale, according to the evidence from his will. It was written on the sixteenth of April 1753 and proved on the twenty-second of September in the same year. He had held a farm and tenements in Edale from the Duke of Devonshire. Family relationships in the will are often not described so one has to look elsewhere for clues. Administration of the estate was granted to Henry Ibotson – no relationship given there. The will of Jeremiah’s brother Benjamin of Nether Denby was written and proved in close chronological proximity and it offers some assistance. It was written on 1st November 1753 and proved at York on 26th March 1754. Perhaps his brother’s recent death provided some impetus for him to make his own will.
Jeremiah’s will offers a Littlewood, an Ibberson, two Roworths and a Hadfield in a part of the document where relatives might have been expected: Benjamin does the same, but with a few more details. They seem to relate to the relatives of their sister Mary Hadfield. She, it will be recalled, had married Nicholas Hadfield at Hope in 1705 and it seems to be their children who receive high placement in the wills of Jeremiah and Benjamin. A Martha Hadfield married Thomas Littlewood of Carrhead at Hope on 29/1/1729-30. Sarah Ibberson (Ibotson in Benjamin’s will) was probably the Sarah Hadfield who married William Ibottson of Nether Hirst at Hathersage on 28/9/1731. Two more Hadfields appear to have married two men named Roworth: Elizabeth Hadfield and William Roworth of Thornhill married at Hope on 16/9/1733 and Mary Hadfield and Joseph Roworth of Shatton married at Hope on 14/12/1743. A John Hadfield was mentioned in Jeremiah’s will and John and Joseph Hadfield were made joint executors of Benjamin’s will – with no mention of their relationship to the testator. Fortunately, the grant of administration for Benjamin’s estate provides clarity: they were nephews!
Robert had married in 1667, so longevity appears as a feature of some of the group: his sons Joseph and Benjamin were still alive in 1753 at the time of their brother Jeremiah’s will of that year. Henry Ibotson was Joseph’s son-in-law; he had married Mary Sanderson at Bradfield on 29th December 1746.
Richard,
My family research does not bring up any link to the Sanderson’s family. The William Ibbotson of Nether Hirst is mine but Henry of Wharncliffe Side is not. He was most likely a Bradfield Ibbotson. I was never able to positively connect the Bradfield Ibbotsons to my Hathersage/Hope Ibbotsons. There may well have been a common denominator but if so it would go back to the late 16th Century before records became available.
Ken
I too am a direct descendant of Eduardus (Edward) Ibutson 1641-1702. I possess the family Bible belonging to Denis Ibbotson dated 10th October 1798, which records births, marriages and deaths of all his descendants to present date .
Peter,
Can you tell me which line you are descended from.
I am decended from John Ibbotson 1755-1841 whose younger brother was Dennis 1765-1839. Although my website is focussed on my direct ancestors I did quite a bit of research on Dennis’ family and incorporated it into my extended Ancestry.com family tree. There were a few other related Dennis Ibbotsons as well. One was a descendant of Eduardus brother of Kings Hague near Hope. I spent many hours trying to piece together which Dennis was which as the Kings Hague one moved to Hathersage and one of his daughters married her Ibbotson cousin from the other Dennis Ibbotson family ( Greens Mill.) It all got very confusing.
If possible, could you give me your family bible entries related to your Dennis for the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. I will then marry them up with my records and see if we can fill any gaps. I am happy to then add Dennis’ history to the website.
Regards,
Ken